[US] Workplaces beginning to offer instant wage access

Payroll delays continue to be a concern among the US workforce, especially for gig workers. PYMNTS explores how organisations can improve employees’ and freelancers’ financial wellbeing with instant payroll solutions.

Recent research from the Independent Economy Council revealed that 74 per cent of freelance workers have not received their pay on time, with 20 per cent receiving pay one day late and 16 per cent reporting they are regularly not getting paid for up to two months after they expected. 59 per cent of respondents said clients currently owe them more than $50,000 for finished work.

While freelancers reportedly experience the most acute payment delays, salaried employees are not strangers to payroll delays either. Workers who receive their paycheques via a regular biweekly schedule often report financial difficulties during the wait for their next pay period.

Younger workers are becoming more receptive to instant payroll

Earned wage access remains largely unfamiliar to the US workforce as a whole, however, younger generations, millennials and Generation Z are beginning to demand it in growing numbers. These are the cohorts most likely to work in the gig economy.

A recent study by The Harris Poll found that 83 per cent of employees between the ages of 18 and 44 believe they should have access to their wages at the end of each workday or shift. While 80 per cent said these funds should go directly into their bank accounts. Another 78 per cent said that no-cost earned wage access would increase their loyalty to their employer.

Employees are reportedly receptive to changing jobs altogether if the change means access to instant payroll. 81 per cent said it would be the deciding factor when accepting a position. Workers are, however, far less receptive to earned wage access (EWA) if they have to pay an additional charge, with support dropping to just 23 per cent in this case.

Workplaces are starting to offer instant payroll in a limited capacity

According to a recent study by Citizens Bank, 7 out of 10 middle-market companies are offering EWA to some employees, with another 24 per cent intending to implement it in the near future. Only 5 per cent of companies surveyed had no plans to do so at all.

Ordinarily, such systems reportedly rely on instant payment schemes such as the RTP® network to deliver payroll daily, rather than waiting days for legacy automated clearing house (ACH) systems to move money into employee accounts. The number of companies offering instant payroll could reportedly increase as the use of the RTP network grows for other instant payment functions and corporates become more adept in its capabilities.

Source: PYMNTS

(Links via original reporting)

Payroll delays continue to be a concern among the US workforce, especially for gig workers. PYMNTS explores how organisations can improve employees’ and freelancers’ financial wellbeing with instant payroll solutions.

Recent research from the Independent Economy Council revealed that 74 per cent of freelance workers have not received their pay on time, with 20 per cent receiving pay one day late and 16 per cent reporting they are regularly not getting paid for up to two months after they expected. 59 per cent of respondents said clients currently owe them more than $50,000 for finished work.

While freelancers reportedly experience the most acute payment delays, salaried employees are not strangers to payroll delays either. Workers who receive their paycheques via a regular biweekly schedule often report financial difficulties during the wait for their next pay period.

Younger workers are becoming more receptive to instant payroll

Earned wage access remains largely unfamiliar to the US workforce as a whole, however, younger generations, millennials and Generation Z are beginning to demand it in growing numbers. These are the cohorts most likely to work in the gig economy.

A recent study by The Harris Poll found that 83 per cent of employees between the ages of 18 and 44 believe they should have access to their wages at the end of each workday or shift. While 80 per cent said these funds should go directly into their bank accounts. Another 78 per cent said that no-cost earned wage access would increase their loyalty to their employer.

Employees are reportedly receptive to changing jobs altogether if the change means access to instant payroll. 81 per cent said it would be the deciding factor when accepting a position. Workers are, however, far less receptive to earned wage access (EWA) if they have to pay an additional charge, with support dropping to just 23 per cent in this case.

Workplaces are starting to offer instant payroll in a limited capacity

According to a recent study by Citizens Bank, 7 out of 10 middle-market companies are offering EWA to some employees, with another 24 per cent intending to implement it in the near future. Only 5 per cent of companies surveyed had no plans to do so at all.

Ordinarily, such systems reportedly rely on instant payment schemes such as the RTP® network to deliver payroll daily, rather than waiting days for legacy automated clearing house (ACH) systems to move money into employee accounts. The number of companies offering instant payroll could reportedly increase as the use of the RTP network grows for other instant payment functions and corporates become more adept in its capabilities.

Source: PYMNTS

(Links via original reporting)